Elfrid Payton, on bench with injury, is New Orleans Pelicans’ best-dressed cheerleader

Posted Dec 7, 2018

New Orleans Pelicans guard Elfrid Payton in street clothes on the bench during the game between the Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on Wednesday, December 5, 2018.

If you happen to attend a New Orleans Pelicans game, or just watch one on television, make sure you pay attention to the end of the bench.

It can be home or away. There you’ll find the Pelicans starting point guard doing what he can to help his team.

Elfrid Payton is nursing a broken pinky finger, but that hasn’t stopped him from staying locked in to games. He’ll be dressed in street clothes, typically in a well-tailored slim-fitting suit with a protective wrap on his left hand, but still trying to do his best to be involved.

“I feel like I can always help,” Payton said on Thursday night (Dec. 6) following his Toy Workshop Celebration. “When I’m on the bench, everything I see I’m trying to say something. Even if it’s mentioning something to the coaches, whether they take it or not."

Sitting on the sidelines is something relatively new to Payton. He has played 82 games twice in his NBA career and, prior to this season, never had a stretch where he sat out more than eight games in a row.

That changed when he missed nine games with a sprained right ankle he suffered in the Pelicans’ fifth game of the season. New Orleans started 4-0 with Payton in the starting lineup and lost the game in which he was injured. They then dropped the next five games and were 7-7 when he returned on Nov. 16 against the New York Knicks.

But when Payton did return, he suffered a major setback. For the first time in his life – let alone his NBA career – Payton broke a bone.

In the first quarter of his first game back, Payton suffered a fractured left pinky finger.

“It’s been tough, obviously,” Payton said. “I’m not somebody who really misses games. I’m just trying to stay positive and look at it like it’s happened for a reason. Trying to learn as much as possible off the court so when I get back, I can hit the ground running.”

Payton said getting hurt for the second time in his first game back did sting, but he’s trying to make the most out of his opportunity on the bench. He underwent surgery on Nov. 20 in New York and was originally given a timeline of six weeks before he could return to the court.

It was the first time in Payton’s life he’d had to have surgery – “Hope it’s my last time,” he joked.

Rehab is on schedule according to the Gretna native. Payton said he was able to touch a basketball for the first time this week and he’s set to have the pins removed from his hand early next week.

AP

Elfrid Payton (4) broke his pinky in his first game back against the Knicks after missing nine games with a sprained ankle. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

In order to get through the rehab process, Payton has leaned on teammates and those in the organization.

“My teammates have been positive,” Payton said. “The coaching staff has been great. The training staff, all the way to the top of the organization, it’s been encouraging.”

It’s also helped Payton that he’s been able to go through this process in his hometown.

“One thousand percent,” Payton said. “My parents are at the game. My sister is at the game. When I go home, I’m really home home. Everybody is here.”

When Payton was in the Pelicans lineup, the team was in its most efficient form. The Pelicans are averaging 113.4 points per 100 possessions, the fourth-best mark in the league. When Payton plays, the number jumps to 115.1, which would tie the Bucks for the top spot in the NBA.

Payton’s presence also helps out the Pelicans’ defense and allows Jrue Holiday to play off the ball, where he prefers. The Pelicans have shifted Tim Frazier into the starting lineup but don’t have any true point guards coming off the bench now.

So when Payton is able to return, New Orleans should be in a much better place instead of fighting around the .500 mark.

Payton’s timeline likelyputs his return for either the Jan. 2 game at Brooklyn or the Jan. 5 contest at Cleveland. Until then, he’ll do his best to stay engaged and be a part of the team.

“I want to be there with my teammates,” Payton said. “It’s hard to get a win in this league. I don’t want to be a guy just sitting on the sidelines. I want guys to feel like I’m still here fighting.”